A Lady's Servant
by Entoxica
Summary: When Sakura's father died, his will left her to King Demarfen as a wife. Sakura is resigned to the task, but a servant is determined to let her be happy. What happens when he starts caring for Sakura more than he lets on? Sakusasu


The kingdom of Konoha had a king like many others. He was selfish, greedy, and cared nothing for his people. His taxes were high and were spent on luxuries for himself. Thus, his people wished for nothing more than his death, but no one would dare kill him. His servants were afraid of his soldiers, and his soldiers were well paid to do their job. Little did they suspect that the one who would bring about his death would be a lady from a neighboring kingdom, one named Sakura Haruno.

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King Denmarfen sat upon his throne, watching his servants as they hurried past afraid to look at him. Their fear amused him, and at the same time gave him reason for pride. A page approached Denmarfen, looking down. The page bowed and gave him a letter, leaving quickly. Denmarfen opened the letter, his smirk growing larger with each word read:

_Dear King Denmarfen,  
For many years you have offered prices higher and higher for my estate, the Haruno Springs. You were hoping that in my old age I would realize that without a son, you would be better than a total stranger. I cannot say I agree to your reasoning, but please hear my plea. In my will, I have written you down as the one to inherit Haruno Springs on one condition. My daughter, Sakura, is 17 and only ten years younger than you. If you and she marry, then Haruno Springs will be yours. If you refuse, then I will pass the land to a distant cousin of mine and a rival of yours. I am sure you realize that if you need to marry Sakura, that she must be undesirable. This is not true. Here in our town she is coveted by every young man, and many would be willing to force her onto them if she loses the protection of me, and does not gain the protection of a husband. You and I both have something to gain from this deal, you get a young wife who can bear you a son as well as the family property, and I rest in peace knowing my daughter is safe.  
Lord Kyohei Haruno of Haruno Springs_

Denmarfen didn't hesitate for an instant to wonder if the decision was wise, he sent a reply immediately saying he would marry the girl. _You old dog,_ Denmarfen smirked, _you put me in a position that forced me to accept. If your cousin had that land, I would be overpowered from the steeds fed on your "enchanted grass", and weakened by the warriors with the fruit from your trees._ Denmarfen stood up and prepared the servants for their new queen

Sakura

Sakura rode her white mare through the streets of Konohagakure, the capital of Konoha. She glanced at the starving children, running about with muddy faces and fighting for scraps of food. She had to turn away from them before she started to feel their pain. Sakura was sensitive to emotions and often felt them as their own. As her mount rode into the richer part of town, she stared at the people who seemed so oblivious to the suffering. Then, she saw the palace. She nearly fell of her horse at the size of it, how could such a chaotic town exist?

A servant led Sakura to the Throne Room, where a 30ish man sat upon the throne. He had dark brown hair and bright blue eyes that were icy cold and Sakura immediately disliked him. Still, she had her father's will to be fulfilled. She curtsied to the king and gave him her father's will, looking straight into his eyes. He was gazing into her green orbs was an amusement, and an anger. Deep down, Sakura smirked, proud to make this man irritated. "Sakura Haruno. What is your experience in a bed?" Shocked, Sakura's cheeks blushed a bright crimson.

"H-h-how dare you!" The king smirked and Sakura saw she lost the battle of pride.

"Uchiha." A black haired man, 18, stepped forward. "Take Sakura to her room, and find one of the sluts around here to show her the ropes." The boy bowed his head slightly and lead Sakura down a hallway filled with portraits of the king.

"So, you're the one we will have to call _queen?_" Sakura nodded, unsure of what else to do. The Uchiha was silent and continued walking.

Sakura spoke, "What's your name?"

"Sasuke." No more, no less. Just a single word. Sakura looked at him and decided, he was _very_ handsome. She followed him until they reached a wooden door with the imprints of flowers carved in. Sasuke inclined his head, and left. Sakura stepped into the room and gasped. Her family was considerably wealthy, but this room was a least 5 times larger than her old room was. Inside was a blond-haired girl, her eyes blue and full of spirit. She smiled as Sakura approached, and curtsied.

"Your Majesty, I am Ino, your personal servant." Sakura smiled at this girl.

"Call me Sakura, I hate being "lady'ed" and "your majesty'ed" all day long." Ino smiled too, and immediately set to preparing Sakura's clothes.

Of course, Ino wasn't just going to smile and be quiet during this ordeal. She chatted while tightening a corset on poor Sakura, "So, you're marrying King Denmarfen? Poor girl. He doesn't care about anyone but himself. Anyone would much rather marry one of his servants, myself included. In fact, each servant girl takes the time laying claim on different guys. Of course, the most territorial of the girls tend to be the ones who never marry their "fantasy husband." Regardless, when you choose your guy, keep the secret to yourself, some fights can get pretty nasty."

"Ino," Sakura laughed, despite her lack of air, "I'm getting married."

"There's no way His Majesty will be loyal, I have ears you know. Servants talk. He won't care if you have an affair." Sakura would have laughed at this too, but the action would make her faint so she decided otherwise. Ino left Sakura for the wardrobe, still talking, "Now, Sasuke is the one everyone wants deep down. Everyone except a few girls, and that's only because they're married. Even the ones who dream of Shikamaru or Naruto have Sasuke in their heads too."

"I don't know all the servants here, could you tell me about some of them?"

"Okay, you met Sasuke. His family used to be rich enough to buy out Denmarfen out if they wanted. But his older brother killed them all and inherited the money. And Sasuke was taken in by Denmarfen's father in his late age. Now Denmarfen keeps him around because the family was said to have a hereditary magic, most noble families do. So, he keep Sasuke around just in case he has a daughter.

Ino walked over to Sakura, carrying a silky white dress that had a silver sheen. As he started putting the dress on Sakura, she continued listing the servants, "Then there's Shikamaru. He is the son of Denmarfen's adviser, so everyone knows he will be the new one. He is a great chess player, and would be a good general if we had any wars. Naruto is an orphan who stole from Denmarfen's father, so he had him work off the money as a servant. The soonest he could ever get it paid off would probably be about twenty years from now. Longer if he keeps tripping and dropping stuff. Which is pretty stupid of him."

"Stupid?" Sakura asked as the skirt was fastened.

"He does it on purpose, he likes seeing the girls laugh. Now then, Sasuke or Shikamaru would never do that." Ino nodded, surveying Sakura's dress. It fit her slender frame well, though it was a little too low cut considering her figure. Still, fashion was fashion and if the queen wasn't fashionable, the king would have Ino's head. "Hmm, some jewelry I think."

Ino left for a second, then came back holding small diamonds, "Denmarfen would like the bigger ones, but these small diamonds would look better on you so he'll have to live with them." She fastened the necklace and earrings and looked at Sakura. The necklace drew attention away from Sakura's bust and to her lovely throat, and made the outfit much prettier. "If Denmarfen doesn't appreciate how pretty you are, he is even dumber than he looks." Sakura smiled, "Now then, there are more servants, but they aren't as interesting. There's Kiba, he trains the greyhounds. Then there's Shino, no one really know why Demarfen has him, but no one really wants to ask, Shino's kinda creepy. Now then, one weirdo you want to stay away from is Kabuto. The way he looks at you, you feel like he's taking in too much, if you know what I mean. Shino's creepiness is better than Kabuto's any day. Then, Anko is a soldier, even though she's a woman. Rumor has it that she slept with Demarfen, but no one judges her for it. The king will tell a woman that she either sleeps with him or she will be kicked out of the castle, then he'll talk about how they're big sluts."

"I'd rather be kicked out." Sakura replied.

"You act like there's a choice," Ino answered, "this is a town where if you don't work at the castle, then you're begging off the streets. Everyone here has a family to support, with a few exceptions. Besides, you'll be the king's bedmate, you shouldn't be talking."

"That's different," Sakura told Ino, "I'll be his wife, it's my duty to share his bed. No matter how much I don't want to."

"Then why are you?"

"Because if I don't, then chances are someone will rape me, then I can never marry anyone. At least this way, I'm an ex-wife if anything happens and have an excuse. Besides, I can visit Haruno Springs this way."

"Well, back to the servants. There's Kakashi, he's also in the military, in Anko's battalion. Anko could promote him, but," Ino smirked, "then she couldn't see him anymore. The person you want to be on your side is Asuma, he's the king's official swordsman. The best way to have Asuma like you is to be tough, and become friends with Kurenai. Kurenai's the cook, and Asuma is her lover." Ino looked to the window and saw the sun creeping dangerously low, "Looks like it's time to attend dinner, oh goodie." Ino stood and followed Sakura out of the room, whispering directions to the dining hall in Sakura's ear.

Sakura swept into the room, Ino following behind. Demarfen looked at his wife-to-be in approval, until he saw the necklace. His nose wrinkled slightly in distaste, and he leaned in to whisper something to a man next to him, who was smoking. Sakura noticed a sword at his belt, and guessed that it was Asuma. When the king spoke to him, Asuma looked at Sakura and shook his head at Demarfen, either to tell him that he had bad tastes in girls or the necklace looked fine on her. On the king's other side, Sasuke sat, looking at Sakura with his face unreadable. Sakura stood still, not sure where to sit. Everyone waited for a few minutes, not sure why the future queen didn't just sit down. Sakura turned pink and mumbled under her breath so only Ino could hear, "Where do I sit?"

Ino didn't hear Sakura, but the man in front of her did. "Next to Sasuke." He tried to be quiet, but thing about the blond was that whenever he tried to be quiet, Naruto ended up louder than usual.

"Dobe." Sakura heard the voice from Sasuke, but his lips never moved, nor did his face change.

Demarfen looked at Ino coldly, "Ino, make sure that your mistress is properly trained in the art of _sitting down_ since it seems she has not mastered it." Sakura looked hotly at Demarfen, then stood straighter and walked next to Sasuke, sitting down quite well despite the fact that no one ever took her to the school of sitting down.

The meal was soft, people only talked to each other under their breaths, and everyone just looked down at there plates, everyone other than Sakura. She was curious as to who was whom, so she looked around as she ate neatly. She knew that the blond was Naruto, he was the only one who had no training or concern as to whether or not he embarrassed himself or others. Than one next to him had dark brown hair up in a ponytail, making him look similar to a pineapple. Sakura couldn't guess who he was, but something told her that he wasn't someone you'd want to cross.

Next to him was Ino, chatting happily with a woman with dark violet hair, who didn't seem as happy with the seating arrangements. Sakura saw the hardened look in her eyes, _Anko..._ Across from Anko was a 20ish man with silver hair, the bottom half of his face and one eye concealed. Her'd ocassionally say something to Anko, making her blush. From what Ino said, this had to be Kakashi. Next to Kakashi was a guy with dark brown hair, which mostly conealed beneath his hooded cloak. He would have looked mysterious and menacing... if he didn't have a mutt sitting happily atop his head. Remembering Ino's comment about the greyhounds, Sakura guessed this was Kiba and a rescued puppy that was going to be drowned for not being a purebred. Next to Kiba sat a very strange looking man, completely hidden beneath his own hooded cloak except for his nose, which had his sunglasses rested upon them. He was silent, and just stared at his food as though it were a mildly interesting book. Sakura would have laughed out loud at this man, if she wasn't wearing a corset and knew better.

Sakura looked around and suddenly met the eyes of a man, only slightly younger than Kakashi. He also had silver hair, but Sakura hardly noticed as those dark eyes bore directly into her own. Sakura gave an involantay shudder, but couldn't tear her eyes from his. The longer she looked into them, the weaker she felt. Suddenly, Sakura felt herself filling with an animal panic, and her lungs suddenly tightened, as if someone was pressing a pillow against her face. Sakura gasped for air, but it was all in vain as she blacked out... her head landing in the rice pudding.

Sasuke

Sasuke was amazed. One second Sakura was calm and collected, the very image of a noble woman. Then, out of no where, she looked terrified. And then, just to confuse Sasuke more, she fainted. Everyone stared in amazment at the soon to be queen, her hair throughly soaked with her dinner (so much for first impressions). Sasuke's eyes immediately went to Kabuto, who was notorious among the servants for frightening younger girls to the point of hysteria, but the man seemed as surprised as everyone else. _Seemed._ Sasuke knew better than to take Kabuto's expressions as a sure sign of his thoughts. "**INO!**" The blonde winced as she turned to Demarfen, refusing to meet his glance. "What did you do to _my_ bride?" Sasuke tightened slightly at the posessive way Demarfen spoke of Sakura, like he was angry about a stone not polished properly. Sasuke was surprised at his reaction, but didn't think too much of it since he always disapproved of the way most men treated women.

"I-I'm not sure," Ino stuttered under the glare of Demarfen, "p-p-perhaps it-t was her-her corset?" Sasuke remembered that Sakura wasn't wearing a corset when she arrived, and was very slender despite that. Still, that was probably a sign of a weaker body.

"I will not have my wife fainting during _my_ wedding!" Sasuke felt himself tense up again, and irratablely pushed it aside. Women didn't usually affect him like this... it was probably because of Sakura's higher class that Demarfen wouldn't recognize. Still, he felt almost furious at Demarfen's treatment of Sakura.

"Are you so incompentent that you can't even make my wife suitable company to eat with?" Sasuke glanced around and saw a few other people feel sympathy for Sakura and Ino, but no one was as riled up as him.

"I-I'm sorry..."

"_**YOU THINK I WANT SORRY!**_" Everyone jumped at his volume, and Sasuke only felt himself tighten up even more. Out of the corner of his eye, Sasuke saw a hidden smirk in Kabuto's eyes, and knew who caused all of this. Demarfen was now standing up and yelling at the top of his lungs. Sasuke watched sharply as Demarfen got closer and closer to Sakura, his fury only rising.

Everyone gasped as Demarfen grabbed the still unconcious Sakura by her hair, yelling at her limp body. In the single second it took someone to blink, Sasuke was at Demarfen's side, her hand tightly restraining Demarfen's arm. "Restrain yourself," Sasuke ordered sharply. Everyone stared in amazement at the Uchiha, who not only ordered _the king_ to do something, but was obeyed. Demarfen released Sakura and turned to Sasuke, looking like an angry bull. Sasuke looked directly into his eyes, something he refused to do since he became little better than a peasant. "Sakura is not to blame for this, and neither is Ino," Sasuke looked sharply as Kabuto, but didn't make any accusations. "To attack two women for a crime neither committed is a sin punishable by death in most countries, it'd be be wise to keep good impressions with them," Sasuke advised the King, letting go of him.

"Uchiha," Demarfen looked at Sasuke sharply, "if you ever raise a hand against me again, I will have your head served to the common rabble as a feast." Sasuke reamined emotionless at this threat, making Demarfen filled with a cold anger, "Since you believe Sakura to be so _innocent_, you'll have no problem becoming her _little pet._ After all, such an innocent girl would only go so far." Everyone just gaped in amazement as Sasuke gave Demarfen a nod and picked up Sakura, carrying her to her own room with Ino following quickly behind.

_"It is as you ordered Lord Orochimaru. The girl and the Uchiah are in place, and soon your plan will be executed as you wished."_

_"Excellent Kabuto. Soon, Konoha will be mine, and the Uchiha blood will stain these hills of Haruno."_

_"The girl seems stronger than we anticipated, could she be a threat?"_

_"Do not be ridiculous. If anyone is a threat, it's Itachi. The older Uchiha has plans of his own which I am powerless to stop. We may need to use a stronger plan to get Sakura on our side, but she is no threat."_

_"What, my Lord, will we do if Sasuke doesn't love Sakura?"_

_"You could easily make something to force Sasuke's blood to burn for our little cherry blossom. After such a passionate desire, even the cold-faced Sasuke would believe himself in love with Sakura. Just remember, Sakura must not be physically harmed in this. If a single pink hair on her head is out of place, you will suffer horribly."_

_"It is understood."_

**AN: whew This one took a while to imagine up. I got all of this fluffy junk in my head from reading romance novels. Thus, I have tons of lovery-dovey junk in my head that will come out here. Expect less updates though, I'll only work on this when I'm in a sappy mood.**


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